Born on August 26, 1970 in Plainfield, Illinois, Melissa Ann McCarthy is the daughter of Sandra and Michael McCarthy, Irish-Catholic farmers. McCarthy graduated from St. Francis Academy (now Joliet Catholic Academy) in Joliet, Illinois, and moved to New York to begin her career as a stand-up comedian. She appeared at famous clubs such as Stand Up New York and The Improv. While in the city, McCarthy trained at The Actor's Studio, performing in various stage productions. In the late 1990s, she moved to Los Angeles.

In Los Angeles, McCarthy became a member of the legendary improvisation and sketch comedy theatre The Groundlings. A "Groundling" refers to an individual company member who both writes for and performs in the theatre’s shows while teaching classes at the company’s school. McCarthy spent nine years as a main-stage member, making numerous television and film appearances along the way. From 2000 to 2003, she had supporting roles in films like The Kid, Charlie's Angels, and Go. In 2000, McCarthy landed her breakthrough role on the popular WB show Gilmore Girls playing Sookie St. James, the clumsy chef and best friend of Lorelai Gilmore. The show had a successful run until 2007, at which time McCarthy acted alongside Ryan Reynolds in the psychological thriller The Nines.

From 2007 to 2009, McCarthy played the socially awkward best friend of Christina Applegate in the comedy series Samantha Who? Since 2010, McCarthy has played the fourth-grade teacher Molly on the CBS hit sitcom Mike & Molly, a role for which she received her first Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series. In 2011, she starred in the critically acclaimed film Bridesmaids alongside former Groudling Kristen Wiig. McCarthy played Megan, the confident yet awkward sister of the groom, and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress as well as a Screen Actor’s Guild Award and a Critics' Choice Movie Award.

Since Bridesmaids, McCarthy has landed roles in This Is 40 (2012), billed as a "sort-of sequel" to the film Knocked Up; the film Tammy, which she co-wrote with her husband, actor and writer Ben Falcone; and Identity Thief, starring alongside Jason Bateman. Additionally, McCarthy and Annie Mumolo, another Groundling alumnus who co-wrote Bridesmaids, sold a pitch to Lorne Michaels and John Goldwyn for Paramount Pictures about a group of Midwestern women who set out to steal the Stanley Cup.

In 2013, McCarthy showed her strong appeal at the box office. She and Sandra Bullock star in the buddy comedy The Heat. McCarthy plays a Boston cop who teams up with a FBI agent (played by Bullock) in this summer blockbuster. This mismatched duo are out to take down a drug lord in the film, which brought in more than $40 million in its first weekend.

January 27, 2015, it was announced that McCarthy had officially signed for the lead role in the all-female reboot of Ghostbusters directed by Paul Feig, where she will portray Abby, an author and scientist. In May, 2015, McCarthy received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

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